Ihsan Alkhatib

Osama Siblani, Abbie Bazzi's image in the background Susan Dabaja celebrating her primary victory Understanding the 19 th district court primary election A milestone or just another community drama that shall pass?* Judicial elections are usually low key events. Due to the nature of the position itself and the fact that the race is nonpartisan, one does not see the drama and negativity experienced in other races. The 19 th district court primary race of 2016 will be remembered for the drama that unfolded in Arab Dearborn. It was not the Arab American community, as would usually happen, being attacked by outsiders. It was a divided community exchanging accusations. But when all is said and done, what is truly remarkable is that a longtime activist, Osama Siblani, and his paper the Arab American News/Sada al Watan, were at the very center of the drama and the object of derision and anger. To understand what happened, I spoke with a number of Arab Americans w...

Imad Hamad with current and former law enforcement officials My good friend Imad Hamad, Executive Director of the American Human Rights Council, wrote an excellent column on the American national conversation on policing: The latest wave of police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota is another painful reminder of a crisis in policing. The police are tasked with protecting the public, but we are now witnessing attacks on the police. The police find themselves, as one official noted, of having to be friendly and approachable while watching out for their own safety from certain members of the public. We at the American Human Rights Council (AHRC) have always advocated for effective engagement and partnership between the police and their respective communities. Shooting of police officers — public servants who put their lives on the line to protect all of us — present clear evidence that something is seriously wrong and we need to move without delay to address the crisis. ...

Dr. Maksoud and AHRC Executive Director Imad Hamad A great Arab American passed away today. Dr. Clovis Maksoud leaves a great legacy. Below is the press release issued by AHRC, a human rights organization of whcih he was the honorary chair: The American Human Rights Council (AHRC-USA) expresses its profound grief for the passing away of H.E. Ambassador, Dr. Clovis Maksoud. Dr. Maksoud died earlier this morning. The death of Dr. Maksoud  is a great loss to the Arab American community, the Arab World and, indeed, the whole world. Dr. Maksoud’s legacy and contributions to humanity will live on and continue to inspire us for years to come.   The death of Dr. Maksoud brings back the painful memory of the passing away of his wife, Dr. Hala Salam-Maksoud, a great activist and a wonderful human being. The “Maksouds’ era” was one of the greatest and most consequential eras in the history of the Arab- American community. The Maksouds were brilliant organizers, thinke...

Arafat addresses the UN General Assembly, Geneva 1988 Arafat with his men in 1982 Arafat at the UN in  1974 Arafat under siege in his compound in Ramallah PLO leader Yasser  ‪#‎ Arafat‬  was a leader of a revolution who received in 1974 a standing ovation at the General Assembly. He led his men, on the ground, in 1982 under extraordinary circumstances with the PLO and allies vastly out-manned and outgunned. In 1988, because the US denied Arafat a visa, the UN General Assembly took the extraordinary measure of moving its meeting from NYC to Geneva so that he could address it. ‪#‎ EliasChoufani‬ , whose daughter made a "poetic piece" where he attacks Arafat, is a mere paper pusher- with strong 'tude. A chickenhawk who never saw any military action. Of course the enemies of the Palestinian people will focus on the paper pusher, his daughter and her poetic work- and will use his "poetic words" to attack Arafat's legacy. Choufani...

Imad Hamad, AHRC Executive Director Dr. Rima Khalaf, Under-Secretary and Executive of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), in Beirut, Lebanon The Michigan- based American Human Rights Council (AHRC) is holding its annual gala on May 12, 2016 at Greenfield Manor in Dearborn, MI. This year's gala has an impressive keynote speaker and honorees. Below is the information on the gala provided by the AHRC: AHRC is pleased to host High Official of the United Nations for its 2016 "Spirit of Humanity" Gala. The American Human Rights Council (AHRC-USA) is pleased to host at this year's annual gala Dr. Rima Khalaf, Under-Secretary and Executive of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), in Beirut, Lebanon. Dr. Khalaf previously served as the Regional Bureau for Arab States with the United Nations Development Program where she initiated projects to promote good governance,...

The American Human Rights Council Executive Director, Imad Hamad, published an excellent column in the Detroit News on the issue of terrorism and cultural change. It reads: Terrorism is a global problem. Recently, there have been attacks in Turkey, Iraq, Mali, Belgium and Pakistan. It seems that almost no place on Earth is immune from the threat of terrorism. Granted, terrorism is a complex phenomenon and usually has many causes. Today, the world perceives terrorism committed by those of Arab nationality and/or those of Muslim faith as one of the most pressing threats to global security. In countering terrorism, all decent, peace-loving people are in the same camp and are all required to be part of the solution instead of being spectators to unfolding tragedies. Our duty and responsibility as peace-loving people is to help create a culture that values human rights of all people, and therefore helps immunize our youths against the virus of hate that focuses on the demographic ba...

Southern District Court of New York The Federal Southern District Court of New York: Iran shares responsibility for the 9/11 attacks Court holds Iran and Hizbullah provided material support to al Qaeda Case based on expert testimony, Iran does not participate* The Arab media reported that an American court held Iran responsible, along with al Qaeda, for the 9/11 attacks.  There is a large number of civil cases filed by American citizens against Iran seeking damages for acts of terrorism around the world. Iran, for example, was held liable for the kidnapping and killing of American citizens in Beirut in the 1980s and ordered it to pay millions of dollars to the families of the victims and to the former prisoners. One of these victims is the former AP reporter Terry Anderson who, according to the Court, was held by a Hizbullah front group, Islamic Jihad, for 7 years in the 1980s. Anderson was paid about 6 million dollars from Iranian assets as compensat...